Catherine the Great's Instruction and the Enlightenment's Limits

Catherine the Great and the Medical Commission: Smallpox Inoculation in Russia

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Catherine the Great's groundbreaking role in promoting smallpox inoculation across the Russian Empire. In 1768, Catherine became one of the first European monarchs to be inoculated herself, setting a powerful example for her subjects. The episode dives into the work of Dr. Thomas Dimsdale, an English physician who traveled to St. Petersburg to perform the procedure on the empress and her son Paul. Despite widespread fear and superstition, Catherine's decision helped launch a state-sponsored inoculation campaign, the Medical Commission, and she even established the first smallpox hospital in Russia. The conversation also touches on the challenges of spreading medical knowledge across a vast empire, the role of the Orthodox Church, and the lasting impact on Russian public health. Listeners will learn about the specific methods used, the resistance from peasants and clergy, and how Catherine's personal courage influenced the Enlightenment ideals of rational governance and care for the population. #CatherineTheGreat #Smallpox #Inoculation #ThomasDimsdale #MedicalCommission #RussianEmpire #PublicHealth #Enlightenment #StPetersburg #SmallpoxHospital #1768 #Empress #VaccinationHistory #OrthodoxChurch #HistoryOfMedicine #Russia #FexingoHistory #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

The Greek Project: Catherine's Plan to Revive Byzantium

This episode explores Catherine the Great's audacious 'Greek Project' — her grand strategy to liberate Constantinople from Ottoman rule and resurrect the Byzantine Empire under her grandson Constantine. We trace the origins of the plan in Catherine's correspondence with Voltaire and Joseph II, the naming of Constantine Pavlovich as a destined emperor, and the military campaigns that nearly made it a reality. Key figures like Grigory Potemkin, Admiral Samuel Greig, and the Orlov brothers feature prominently. We examine the naval triumph at Chesma in 1770, the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca, the annexation of Crimea, and the Second Russo-Turkish War. The episode also considers why the project ultimately failed — European power politics, the death of Joseph II, and the French Revolution — and how its legacy shaped Russian imperial ambitions for centuries. #CatherineTheGreat #GreekProject #ByzantineEmpire #Constantinople #OttomanEmpire #GrigoryPotemkin #ChesmaBattle #KucukKaynarca #JosephII #ConstantinePavlovich #Novorossiya #BlackSeaFleet #RussianEmpire #18thCentury #EasternQuestion #History #FexingoHistory #Podcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great and the Smolny Institute for Noble Maidens

In 1764, Catherine the Great founded the Smolny Institute in St. Petersburg, Russia's first state-run educational institution for women. Inspired by the French Saint-Cyr, the institute aimed to create a 'new race' of enlightened, educated women who would influence society through their virtue and learning. This episode explores the institute's founding under Ivan Betskoy, its curriculum blending academic subjects with etiquette and arts, the strict separation of noble and bourgeois students, and the famous 'Smolyanki' portraits by Dmitry Levitsky. We also discuss the paradoxes: the Western model in an autocratic setting, and the real lives of graduates who found their education both liberating and isolating. Featuring the girl Alexander Pushkin almost married, Sofya Pushkina, and the institute's legacy in shaping Russian women's education through the 1917 revolution. #SmolnyInstitute #CatherineTheGreat #IvanBetskoy #RussianEmpire #WomensEducation #Smolyanki #DmitryLevitsky #SmolnyConvent #SaintCyr #EducationalReform #NobleMaidens #18thCentury #StPetersburg #FexingoHistory #History #Podcast #RussianHistory #EasternEuropeanHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great and the 1762 Coup That Made Her Empress

In this episode, Lucas and Luna go back to where Catherine's story truly began: the dramatic palace coup of 1762 that overthrew her husband, Emperor Peter III, and placed her on the Russian throne. They walk through the key players — the Orlov brothers, Princess Dashkova, and the guards of the Preobrazhensky and Izmailovsky regiments — and the chaotic night of June 28, when Catherine rode to St. Petersburg to claim power. They discuss Peter's unpopular reforms, the role of the Imperial Guard, and the mysterious death of the deposed emperor at Ropsha. Was it murder, or a drunken accident? And what does the coup tell us about Catherine's political instincts and the nature of 18th-century Russian autocracy? A tightly focused look at the event that launched the reign of the woman who would become known as Catherine the Great. #CatherineTheGreat #PalaceCoup #1762 #PeterIII #RussianHistory #ImperialGuard #OrlovBrothers #EkaterinaDashkova #Ropsha #PreobrazhenskyRegiment #IzmailovskyRegiment #Romanovs #StPetersburg #Autocracy #18thCentury #History #FexingoHistory #WomenInHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great's Court Painter Dmitry Levitsky and Russian Portraiture

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the life and work of Dmitry Levitsky, Catherine the Great's court painter and the most celebrated portraitist of 18th-century Russia. They discuss his masterpieces, including the Smolyanki series depicting students from the Smolny Institute, his iconic portrait of the empress, and his portraits of figures like Denis Diderot and Alexander Kokorinov. They examine Levitsky's blend of Western Rococo and Russian realism, his training under Alexei Antropov, his founding role at the Imperial Academy of Arts, and how his art reflected Catherine's Enlightenment ideals. The conversation also touches on his later years and tragic blindness, ending with a reflection on how his portraits offer a window into Catherine's court. This episode brings to life the artistic legacy of a painter who shaped Russia's visual identity. #DmitryLevitsky #CatherineTheGreat #RussianArt #18thCenturyPainting #Portraiture #Smolyanki #ImperialAcademyOfArts #Rococo #RussianRealism #SmolnyInstitute #DenisDiderot #AlexeiAntropov #StPetersburg #Hermitage #RussianHistory #History #FexingoHistory #ArtHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]